The following e-mail
has been sent to the
President of Tynwald, Mr. Noel Cringle, who has called for the UK's
colonial
representative to be renamed. The contents are self explanatory.

29-12-02

Dear Mr. Cringle,

We note with interest
your recent comments
regarding the title of the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man, The
English Queen's permanent representative in the UK's colony, the Isle
of
Man.

Before making further
comment, I reproduce
for you some of our more recent material on the subject:

Lieutenant
Governor (From Yn Pabyr Seyr
- January 2001)

In the wake of the
appointment of the new
Lieutenant Governor, Mec Vannin has written to the Chief Minister
asking
him to have the situation properly addressed. The text of the letter is
reproduced below. Mr Gelling has responded by passing the letter to
Tynwald's
Constitutional Committee. Since The will of Tynwald was clearly ignored
in relation to this matter and the UK Home Office continues to
demonstrate
its total contempt for our entitlement for self-government, he may as
well
have passed it straight to the waste paper bin and cut out the middle
man.
Until the central figures in Manx politics realise what they are
supposed
to be doing (running a country), Mannin is forever to be consigned to
being,
in reality, a constitional anomily of English regional government.

Letter to Chief
Minister in the wake
of Ian MacFadyen's appointment.

Dear Mr
Gelling

The recent
controversy surrounding the
appointment of the Lieutenant Governor serves yet again to demonstrate
that we are, irrespective of any claims to the contrary by any party, a
mere colony of the UK which, in turn, increasingly means England. This
is a deplorable situation which cannot be accepted by any body claiming
the title "government."

Though
understandable on one hand, those
who advocate the appointment of a Manx person to the position have
essentially
missed the point: The Lieutenant Governor is the UK's representative,
here
at the UK's bidding to do the UK's work. Any quaint nonsense about
being
the Lord of Mann's representative is just that: Nonsense. This country
is ulimately administered by the UK Home Office(*) for the UK's
ultimate
benefit and any Manx person in the role will be called upon to act in a
manner that is a betrayal of their own people and country. The
Lieutenant
Governor is not simply a titular role and this fact was driven home by
the Lieutenant Governor's role in maintaining a matter of national
importance
(the "Edwards Review") as secret from the Manx government.

Until such time as
this country has
reaquired its rightful independence from the colonising power, the
concept
of democracy incontravertably dictates that we should have a
representative
of Mannin in Westminster, not a representative of Westminster in
Mannin.

To this end, we
call upon you to use
your position and influence to properly direct the development the Manx
government into a legally recognisable constitutional reality. A
logical
step would be to have the position of Lieutenant Governor scrapped and
replaced by a Manx Envoy to Westminster.

(*) Now the Lord
Chamberlain's Office

What did he do
wrong? (From "Yn Pabyr
Seyr" January 2000)

Jack Corrin thought
he had done all the
right things in his career and couldn't be passed over on his
application
for the post of lieutenant governor. There are two huge big dirty blots
in his copy book, however, that can never be
expunged.

First and foremost,
he is Manx. The English
administer us as they always have - a colony - and everyone knows that
you don't put a native in charge of a colony.

Secondly, he clapped
in the abbey (you
know, when they buried the Princess of Essex). People who want to work
for Bizzy Lizzy shouldn't applaud politically charged challenges to her
authority.

He may have committed
treason in the eyes
of the English crown, but at least by not getting the job he will not
be
called upon to act as a traitor to his own people.

----------------

To continue, you will
appreciate from the
foregoing that we do not regard a Lieutenant Governor under any title
as
an acceptable entity. You, more than anyone else, are aware that on our
most symbolically important day of the year, you must give up your seat
for the governor so there must be no confusion or misapprehension as to
this man's place or role.

Whereas the functions
of the UK's Lieutenant
Governor may have been partly delegated to other people, his primary
function
remains. Consequently, playing around with titles is quite meaningless.

We are sure that you
share our desire to
see the government in the Isle of Man develop, at some point, into the
government of the Isle of Man and, to this end, we would ask that you
look
more critically at the function rather than the title of the UK's
overseer
of the Isle of Man. Nor must people be misled about our colonial status
vis a vis the UK, particularly in our own country, where a misnomer
would
mislead people into believing that we are less subject to UK rule than
we really are and thus hamper proper constitutional development.

Yours sincerely, etc.

Corkill
scared of Freedom of Information

Attempts to uncover
the truth behind the
dealings that led to a private housing development arising out of what
was supposed to have been a tourism based project are currently stalled
because the private interests involved are challenging the legal right
of the Inquiry, Chaired by an English QC to investigate their accounts
and tax affairs.

Despite a self
imposed reporting embargo
on the affair by the Island's only mass circulation newspaper, it has
been
impossible to keep the lid on some of the less than commendable actions
of the politicians, civil servants and business interests involved. It
is not suprising that the Inquiry is enjoying less than whole-hearted
support
from several quarters and the legal challenge was fairly predictable.

On the political
side, Mr. Peter Karran
MHK for Onchan, who was successful in having the Inquiry instituted,
has
since been subject to a campaign of harassment and vilification by
certain
other members of the government in the Isle of Man. This ultimately
resulted
in the Speaker of the House of Keys, Mr. Tony Brown, whose own
involvement
in the Mount Murray planning fiasco has not yet been fully uncovered,
unilaterally
preparing a "report" into Mr. Karran's asking of questions in the House
of Keys. There continues to be conflicting interpretations of the
findings
of this report and it appears to be little more than a crude attempt at
intimidating both Mr. Karran and any other non-establishment members of the Island's
House of Keys
from asking awkward questions.

An attempt to
establish a Freedom of Information
Act in the Island in the mid 90s failed and, despite the government's
penchant
for blindly following UK practice when it is convenient to do so, never
fails to find an increased sense of independence when its own
activities
could be hindered or opened to scrutiny. Hence, recent UK legislation
that
effectively ends the Official Secrets Act as it stood has not even been
mentioned by the government in the Isle of Man. Indeed, even those
elected
to Local Authority (remit: street lighting and dog-fouling) are
required
to sign up to an Act extended to the Isle of Man that is now
effectively
defunct in the originating jurisdiction!

Mec Vannin, whose own
submission to the
Tynwald Committee that investigated the need for Freedom of Information
was extensive and commended at the time, has written to Mr. Corkill in
the light of comments he made on Manx Radio in relation to Mr. Peter
Karran.
The letter, sent in November, has not yet been acknowledged. Perhaps
he's
having difficulty with some aspect of it. The letter is reproduced
below:

Dear Mr. Corkill,

In the wake of Mr.
Tony Brown's "report"
into Mr. Peter Karran's asking questions in the House of Keys, you
spoke
on Manx Radio of a motion you
brought attempting
to create a more "transparent" media. Unfortunately, it doesn't matter
what sort of media we have, it's meaningless until we have a
transparent
government, as I'm sure you will agree. In the continued absence of any
meaningful freedom of information legislation, both media and
politicians
are utterly dependent upon second-hand information and rumour. As a
result,
the media is frequently regarded as little more than a government
propoganda
tool and MHKs maybe forced to ask questions which are similarly based
on
either second-hand information or rumour, no matter how well-founded it
may be.

Similarly, in the
absence of any requirement
for members of Government to give answers or have the information they
supply independently
scrutinised, there is
nothing to give the public confidence that answers given by members of
government are open and honest.

In light of your
comments on Manx Radio,
I look forward to your giving your commitment to having meaningful
freedom
of information
legislation introduced.
This would mean that the media would be able to report information
first-hand,
rather than rely on second-hand stories, and people like Mr Karran
could
get answers to questions without resorting to asking questions in the
Keys
which invariably meet with the hackneyed bluff of "commercial
confidentiality."

Yours, etc.

Planning
Review pre-emptive and premature

In September, the
Department of Local Government
called for public comment and submission into the Planning Process.
This
was claimed to be the first such reveiw in 20 years although this
matter
was actually dealt with in some detail in the DLGE "Planning for the
Future"
consultative document to which Mec Vannin made extensive submission.
This
review was undertaken during the early 1990s, less than 10 years ago.

Currently, there is
an independent inquiry
into the planning process and how it led to a private estate being
developed
in a rural area: The Mount Murray inquiry has revealed gross abuse of
the
planning system but the newspaper monopoly in the Island is refusing to
cover the disturbing revelations of the inquiry.

Mec Vannin felt that
the timing of the
planning review was singularly inappropriate and expressed this view to
the DLGE as detailed in a letter, reproduced below:

Dear Sirs,

We understand that
the DLGE intends
taking public submission in regard to a potential review of planning
procedure.

Unfortunately, the
details of this are
not available at the government website but, in any case, we feel that
such a review is ill-considered in light of the on-going "Mount Murray"
inquiry: It is patently obvious from evidence given to date that there
have been serious failiures of the system as intended and, until the
inquiry
is concluded and the its findings made
public in full, such
a review would be made in ignorance of the facts.

Consequently, Mec
Vannin calls upon
the Department to delay such a review and call for public submission
until
the inquiry's findings have been fully publicised.

Yours, etc.

The Department
refused to wait for the
outcome of the Inquiry, and you may draw your own conclusions as to
why.
Consequently, Mec Vannin did not waste time making submission to an
excersise
that has no credibility. What is the point in procedures if they are so
openly ignored?

The Rabbit's
still on the loose....

As he comes to the
end of his first calendar
year in office, Richard Corkill might like to reflect on the real
meaning
of democracy on the Isle of Man. But then perhaps he wouldn't.
Because,
from where some of us are standing, democracy on the Island doesn't
look
too healthy.

Let's take one
example that the Corkill
administration afforded us within its first few precious weeks in
office:
The purchase of the Nunnery. And let's ask a very simple question. How
many people knew in advance? In those few frantic weeks before the 2001
election, how many people actually knew that the Government intended to
secure the purchase of the property the moment that it was safely back
in power?

I didn't know. I
didn't see it in anyone's
manifesto. I would never have suspected that the Government had already
undertaken to guarantee a loan for 5 million to purchase a property
worth
3 million, using a paper company that had been set up years before for
the purpose, which it had conveniently turned into a charity. And I
would
never have thought that DLGE would then purchase the fields back again
through the land bank, regardless of the fact that they already
appeared
in the balance book as an asset against the original loan.

My suspicion is that
nobody knew. Nobody
except the Council of Ministers, the HSBC, and the Truly Reverend
Graham Ferguson Lacey. The most obvious conclusion is that the
electorate
were not meant to know. Had it been public knowledge, then the players
would have had to do it properly, going cap in hand to Tynwald for the
money, instead of laundering the purchase piecemeal through the
Department
of Education budget (which is what is currently happening).

In the United
Kingdom, they complain of
Stealth Taxes. On the Isle of Man, we could complain about something
more
wholesale: Stealth Government. The number of Government adventures that
have actually had a popular mandate is, I suspect, vanishingly small.
Many
have gone almost unannounced until the contracts were irreversibly
signed.

Very few people who
watched the expensive
new diesels fire up at Pulrose in the early 90s could have
foreseen
that, within less that a decade we would be taking out a
mortgage/bond
for stg50 million on an undersea cable link, stg20 million plus on a
meandering
gas pipeline, and stg80 million on a new CCGT power station that,
according
to one UK expert, should have cost half of that.

Very few of the
people I know wanted the
stg250 million Iris scheme, the stg42 million Incinerator, or the
Douglas
ring road to service them. But then perhaps I mix in the wrong company.
everybody I know wanted the money invested on organic composting,
recycling and public transport.

So why is the Isle of
Man Government so
reluctant to confide in the electorate, or to take into account of the
wishes of the Manx people. Why does is choose instead to concuss them
into
submission with the Council of Ministers block vote.

Is it just plain
arrogance? It could be
in some examples. In the case of the Incinerator, the contract with
United
Waste appears to have been signed 6 months before the Public Inquiry
approved
the stack; either an extraordinary ability to foresee the outcome, or a
yawning disregard for it either way.

Or is it fear of
public opinion? The Government
has known for years about the Douglas Ring Road. But, apart from some
noises
about the widening of Vicarage Road, there has been very little public
consultation. I have always half expected them to resurrect their
drawings
for the flyover across Braddan Hills. If they did, I think that we
would
be the last to know.

Just as business
fails when retailers lie
about the goods they market, so democracy fails when elected
representatives
fail to come clean about their intentions. Democracy is about mandates.
If you go into government supporting one point of view, then do an
about-turn
in government just to become a minister, then you have ceased either to
honour your own views or to represent those of your constituents.
(Before
he got into power, you may remember, Mr Corkill opposed
incineration.)
When the collective view of the Council of Ministers becomes more
important
that the views of the electorate, then mandates are worthless.

Democracy is also
about public access to
public information. Mr Corkill himself can partly take credit for the
latest
culture in his administration, that of hiding behind commercial
confidentiality.
In a recent example, Mr Corkill was asked by Mr Karran to name the
beneficial
owners of certain offshore companies that receive an income from the
Government.
But he refused to disclose the information, maintaining that it was
commercially
confidential.

Can the Directors of
a Company refuse to
disclose the beneficiaries in their accounts to their shareholders? We,
as taxpayers, are shareholders in Isle of
Man PLC. So surely
we should be given the same rights. For all we know, the Chief Minister
could be happily dishing out half the government contracts to his
brother
in law and we would be none the wiser. An absurd notion, perhaps, but
quite
possible in the current climate of confidentiality.

As long as the Isle
of Man Government continues
to conceal its intentions with regard to such projects as the Nunnery,
as long as it continues to treat public opinion as an afterthought to
be
shrugged off, as long as it continues to hide its dealings behind such
devices as commercial confidentiality of the Official Secrets Act, and
as long as it continues bludgeon the parliamentary process with its
block
vote, then democracy on the Isle of Man will be dead.

Manx Rabbit

Churchill
v Christian

Even in the face of
detailed evidence as
to Illiam Dhone's (William Christian's) actions and intentions from the
time he raised the militia against Charlotte de Tremouille up to the
time
he was murdered by her twisted and ingratious off-spring, there is
still
a body of people who continue to level the false allegations instituted
at the time to blacken his name, or feel somehow compelled to undermine
his actions. The notion of having a national hero is regarded as
positively
dangerous to many English settlers here who have had an easy time in
getting
collaboration in ensuring that too many Manx people are kept tugging
their
forelocks and regarding the English as their masters.

Isn't it funny how no
such problem exists
when talking about their own national figures. Take the recent
"greatest
Briton" (for which you must read English) nonsense. Who won? A great
thinker?
An inventor whose ideas furthered humanity? A founder of some great and
lasting movement? A person who put their fellow man before themselves?
Of course not. They chose Winston Churchill, a lying, untrustworthy,
xenophobic,
war-mongerer whose only lasting legacy is the partition of Ireland and
thousands of deaths of people that the UK claims as its own.

He was an
enthusiastic supporter of the
campaign against the Boers (when the English saved the Nazis some time
by inventing concentration camps for them), he rose to the higher ranks
of politics through back-stabbing, manipulation, and double-cross. So
shallow
an individual was he that he tried to buy-off Michael Collins, a man
who
stood head and shoulders above him in any positive quality you care to
name, by inferring that he would be rewarded with a position of power
within
the British Empire if he turned traitor. Naturally, Churchill was
unsuccesful.

Had it not been for
the opportunity offered
by the second world war, he would have remained nothing more than a
minor
historical figure except in Ireland where his and Lloyd-George's names
are still remembered with the disgust they deserve. Even his part in
Hitler's
downfall has been massively over-played and he was no friend to the
British
troops, who he was perfectly happy to treat as disposable. His
bombastic
mind-set made him an ally of Arthur Harris's wasteful and unproductive
area-bombing campaign and, whilst Stalin was genuinely paranoid, he was
right to be wary of Churchill - a double-cross was always a real
possibility.

As a military mind,
he was lacking in both
imagination and tactical expertise. Infact, his only real strength was
the ability to carefully construct one-line quotes. In this he had no
flair
or spontaneity - the famous "never so much..." and "we'll fight them on
the beaches..." quotes were, infact, re-works of one-liners already in
his repetoir and even then, they were not written in response to an
event
but written in the hope than they would fit some future event.
Self-evidently,
had he been so "great," the English people would have returned his
party
to power when the coalition dissolved simply to have him as
prime-minister.

No. His only real
achievement was to instigate
and aggrevate a bloody civil war in Ireland and assist in creating a
statelet
founded on bigotry that would result in thousands more deaths up to
this
day. That, however, is not the history that suits English governments
or,
indeed, people. The truth is often unpalletable.

Mec Vannin doesn't
try to deify Illiam
Dhone. We are republicans and he, unlike some of his close relatives,
was
a royalist. He worked closely and well for the English Lord of Mann but
never forgot who and what he was. When faced with a conflict, a deeper
loyalty emerged. At his rigged trial, he displayed the contempt it
deserved
and gave no evidence: Lesser men would have pleaded for their lives. We
have no difficulty or moral conflict in remembering this man for the
actions
that saved our independence. Those who undermine him should question
themselves
more closely.

Meanwhile, Richard
Corkill has revealed
how much he would have liked to had Churchill as a Christmas dinner
guest.
Erm, that's really interesting, Richard.

THE LAMENT
OF THE MOTHER TONGUE

The following poem
was originally in
Manx but it's English rendition is worth printing to demonstrate how
things
have simply got worse.

"I am thy dying
Mother-tongue, The first speech of this
Island race,Dying, because of the
deep wrongOf their neglect and my
disgrace.

" 'Twas I who kept
the strangers out,And kept unspoiled our
Island home:'Tis I could put them
still to rout,And spare my children
grief to come.

"But now up every
hill and glen,On Cardle Vooar, in
"Tholt-y-will,Come companies of
Englishmen,Their multitudes
increasing still.

"From Jurby southward
to the Sound,Mad as the beasts the
croghan stings,The Manxmen a strange
taste have foundFor English words and
English things"

As never their
forefathers used,Who loved their land and
cherished me,And in their wisdom
still refusedThe stranger's gold and
flattery.

"Ah ! would chat
those who yet remainOf loyal heart and loyal
speechWould rise upon the
Saxon strain,And drive them seaward
from the beach;

"And turn again to
field and boatThe simpler tasks of
former daysFrom the bewildering
world remote,Contented in their
fathers' ways.

"O men of Mannin,
trust not thoseWho come with gifts but
stay to rule;Their gold is but the
bribe of foes,Their speech a plaything
for the fool.

"But I, forgot, must
follow thisThe dusty pathway to the
tomb;For see, my head how
gray it isWith age, and grief, and
nearing doom!"

W. WALTER GILL.

Illiam
Dhone Commemoration 2003 - English oration by Roy Kennaugh

Today we commemorate
the treacherous death
of Illiam Dhone 340 years ago. A true Manxman who recognised the
importance
of protecting the rights of the Manx people; the right to
self-determination
and national identity. But after all these years have we achieved a
credible
position of independence and is our national identity still under
threat
?

We cannot stand still
and it is inevitable
that the way of life on the Island will evolve but it is the pace and
direction
of change that concerns many people. Part of this change will be
influenced
by the relatively large number of people that have migrated to
the
Island recently. Many of these people have moved here for genuine
reasons,
for employment and to enjoy the safe and scenic environment. Some will
integrate and provide valuable contributions to their new community,
making
this Island a better place to live. However, there are others who have
come here purely for their own self-interests. Some of which are
prepared
to exploit weak government and weak regulations in order to satisfy
their
greed for money and it is questionable of what real benefit these
people are to the Island. Unfortunately there are Manxmen who fall into
this group, who are prepared to exploit, speculate and sell their souls
for thirty pieces of silver.

We have a
proliferation of businesses which
seem to be prepared to exploit situations in order to maximise profits,
with employees becoming slaves to target setting and performance
management
and we all become victims of the longtail race so evident across the
water.
People of Mann enjoy full employment while you can but beware of the
people
who put money before everything else, job security is not high on their
agenda.

I share the
belief of many people
that the relatively safe, friendly and easy-going way of life is
threatened.
As small communities expand rapidly with a surge of new residents,
there
is the danger of developing dormitory towns with diminishing
community
spirit.

The village way of
life where people know
each other and have the time to talk to each other is disappearing and
this is a quality of life that should not be lost.

An ever-growing
population has an impact
on the quality of life and the government must decide and justify what
would be an ideal population size for the Island. Many
people
believe that the current population is already big enough and that the
quality of life has already been compromised. Tynwald has rejected a
referendum
on the subject of residency control but it should not ignore the wishes
of the people who elected them.

To many people the
Isle of Mann is just
another English county. This mentality is reinforced by practices such
as playing "God save the Queen as the National" Anthem at the
Tynwald
ceremony, Civic Services and other functions.

The government adopts
English legislation
with sometimes minor alterations and usually compares its performance
in
areas such as recycling of waste and school class sizes with standards
of England , the ‘dirty man of Europe instead of comparing with and
aspiring
to much better models. The Department of Education has adopted a
slightly
modified version of the English National Curriculum which was
established
for political rather than educational reasons. A curriculum that is
prescribed,
reducing choice and driven by an obsession for testing. Education of
young
people should be about providing opportunities for them to achieve
their
potential and preparing them for life and the world of work. Schools
are
becoming examination machines, putting unnecessary pressure on both
pupils
and teachers.There is much more to education than exam results.

We have greater
autonomy than the oppressive
days of the Derbys, and the Government must have the courage to
shake
off the English domination and establish itself in the international
arena.
But if this is to become a reality it has to demonstrate competence,
strength
and integrity. Although there are external challenges ahead the
Government
must look closely at its performance on local
issues. It has been
successful at increasing income but less astute at spending the
money
wisely, and to many people it appears that public money has been
squandered
on extravagant projects. Performance in certain areas are open to
question,
particularly in the planning system, where there is still no strategic
plan and decisions appear inconsistent and sometimes illogical. Its
record
on waste management and housing is short-sighted and complacent.
Its stance on Sellafield and the B.B.C. is timid at best;
and
when it gives preference to bathing water rather than drinking water
quality,
its priorities are definitely suspect. The government can set the lead
in fiscal policy but ‘drags its feet on social and environmental
legislation.

The Human Rights Act,
to be implemented
this year, is likely to open up a can of worms when applied to
residency
and work permit policy. It also requires government to be open and
transparent
and it should aim to eliminate undemocratic influences.

A sense of identity
is vital to a thriving
community and although the way of life is naturally evolving it is
important
that the healthy components are retained to complement the changes.
There
is a real risk of losing the Manx identity despite the heartening
revival
of the Manx language. We should encourage our young people to learn
about
our history and maintain the best of our culture in our changing
society.
But, perhaps more importantly, is the threat to our relaxed and caring
way of life. We should work together to encourage a fair and
non-elitist
society which puts people before money and provides a safe environment
for all to grow up in, without prejudice. We must not jeopardise the
quality
of life we enjoy for the sake of a higher standard of living.
Politicians
should note the words of T.E.Brown reported in a letter to the press
recently,
Be proud of your Island, don't do anything that will injure the
character,
Manxmen are capable of progress, but let them progress as Manxmen.

Finally, a call for
this government to
make the 2nd January a national holiday to highlight the
importance
of a national martyr and to emphasise that we are a nation in our own
right.

Mec Vannin made an
extensive response to
the of Trade and Industry in relation to proposed changes to the work
permit
regulations.

Although the recent
cencus claimed a population
of 76,000, few people give this any great credibility and the real
figure
is reckoned by some to be over 80,000. This represents an increase in
population
of 20,000 in 20 years despite a huge number of young Manx people being
forced to emigrate because of inflated housing prices and failiure to
recognise
our own talent in the field of more specialised employment.

The investigation is
still under way but
we hold little hope for any positive outcome - the whole review is has
been instigated by those who oppose the work permit system and the DTI
seems only too keen to accommodate them.

The submission is
reproduced in full below:

Work Permit
Legislation - Proposed changes

Mec Vannin regard a
work permit system
as a mere supplement to a citizenship framework. In the absence of such
a citizenship framework, the work permit legislation forms (in theory)
a crude form of immigration control. It is stressed that this situation
is purely theoretical since, as is admitted by the Department of
Industry
itself, of nearly 13,000 work permits issued in the past two years, a
mere
57 have been revoked. It is also readily admitted that the overwhelming
majority of work permit applications are made upon the presumption that
they will be granted. Indeed, the refusal of a work permit seems to
provoke
self-righteous indignation in some quarters.

It has long been held
by both Mec Vannin
and a large number of others in the Island that the work permit system
is nothing more than an administrative sop to be ignored or over-ridden
for the greater part or, on just a few occassions, used as a punitive
measure
against individuals or businesses who have incurred the disfavour of
someone
in government. Coupled with the well known device of tailoring a job
application
to suit a particular applicant, the system is totally lacking in any
credibility
and is indeed in need of substantial overhaul. This is where Mec Vannin
and the Department under Mr. Downie are, and are likely to remain,
diametrically
opposed.

The economy of the
Isle of Man has been
"boom-bust" for as long as there has been work permit legislation and
so
its presence can be seen to be singularly ineffective in stabilising
the
economy or employment situation. When there is a boom, work permit
criteria
are relaxed. This is the very time that the economic upper hand is
available
to force businesses to train and recognise through promotion and wages
the indigenous workforce. It is also the time that population
increase
must be discouraged in order to prevent artificially high unemployment
figures in the inevitable bust that follows.

Conversely, in times
of economic down-turn
when natural emigration and disinsentive to imigration renders the work
permit system virtually defunct, it is applied more rigorously. This is
essentially because time allows it and traditionally, in a most
immature
piece of reasoning,, the government believe that unemployment figures
can
be driven down by denying permits to those who were welcomed with open
arms a couple of years earlier. The real result is that unemployed Manx
workers are frequently driven into jobs beneath their real worth (or
risk
losing benefit) whilst those requiring a permit may continue to receive
state support as long as a permit is denied them.

The consultative
document demonstrates
the intention of the Department of Industry under Mr. Downie to
facilitate
the short term and self serving interests of business (and frequently
non-Manx
business at that) to the detriment of the Manx work-force by
formalising
what has been the fundamental failiure of the work-permit system for
decades.
It must also be stressed that the work permit system and its failures
are
merely one aspect of an ongoing failiure of governments in the Isle of
Man to actually represent and provide a future for the Manx people. To
look at work-permit regulation in isolation rather than as part of a
cohesive
policy of economic and social management is virtually meaningless: Of
course
there will be a demand to import people with skills as long as there is
no requirement to train. Of course talent will leave as long as both
educational
and employment opportunities are not available on our own doorstep. Of
course there will be a shortage of workers overall as long as the
economy
is allowed to run out of control as it is now. The list could go on and
on.

Bearing in mind that
this matter cannot
and must not be viewed in isolation, Mec Vannin submits the following
viewpoint
and policies for work permit regulation.

Application
Principles

Work permits should
only ever be regarded
as a temporary measure. A work permit should only ever be issued for a
fixed term to complete a specific job or to train a Manx worker to the
required standard. The issue and re-issue of work permits on an open
ended
basis until one is no longer required is a farce. The only other
circumstance
under which work permits should be issued is to those who are
undergoing
a probationary period with a view to taking up permanent residence in
the
Island. Such people would have to already have to have met other
criteria.
Re-issues of work permits should only occur when exceptional
circumstances
can be demonstrated.

In light of the
above, automatic grant
of "Isle of Man Worker" status to those who have had a permit for 5
years
must cease.

It must be made clear
in any and all job
adverts carried off-Island that work permit legislation is in force.

All work-permit
applications and approvals
should be available for public inspection.

All job vacancies
should be advertised
on the Island BEFORE any off-Island advertising is embarked upon.

The criteria for
advertising jobs to the
Manx workforce before entertaining off-Island advertising must be
made clear. At the moment, it is difficult to get the same answer twice
as to what level of advertising and where is required in the Isle of
Man
to satisfy work permit legislation.

Manx job applicants
must be informed of
any non-Manx applicants and any unsuccessful applicant must be informed
if the job goes to a non-Manx applicant.

All applications must
contain a declaration
regarding any criminal past
and an authorisation to be positively vetted.
Applications from jurisdictions that do not cooperate should not be
considered.

Declarations
regarding any long-term health
problems and / or habituations should be included. Again, an
authorisation
to confirm from current medical records must be included.

Whereas the current 3
day exemption for
sporadic work is reasonable, this exemption must not apply if the
visits
form part of a regular capacity within the Island e.g. a person who
regularly
visits the Island for two days each month should require a permit.

There must be no
exempt occupations.

Self-employed
applicants must demonstrate
that the issue of a permit would not be detrimental to a Manx worker.

All applicants must
be able to provide
references.

II. Reasons for
Refusal

Failiure to meet any
of the above criteria
must result in a refusal.

False declarations
must result in an automatic
disbar with a potential for legal action.

If positive vetting
reveals a problem in
keeping with clearly laid out criteria, the permit must not be issued.

If a capable Manx
worker is available,
then a permit must not be issued.

If a Manx worker can
be trained within
a reasonable period of time, the permit must not be issued.

Any previous
contravention of the regulations
should act as an obstacle.

No permits should be
issued to any business
that has suffered redundancies within the previous 12 months.

No permits should be
issued to any business
that has announced redundancies.

III The Function
and Powers of the Work
Permit Committee.

The primary function
of the work permit
committee must be to determine firstly if a a permit is justifiable and
secondly if the applicant is suitable.

In this aspect, the
above guidelines must
be followed. Although the above is a "bare bones" set of principles,
the
fleshed out legislation must leave the least possible room for
subjective
decision making on the part of the committee.

To establish a
genuine need, the committee
must be sufficiently resourced to consult and acquire independent
advice
as to the skills, qualifications and experience needed to perform a
particular
function. The applicants must demonstrate that there is not a
reasonable
opportunity to train, adapt or promote a Manx worker to a given
position.

Similarly, the
committee must be sufficiently
resourced to properly investigate the declarations and backgrounds of
the
individuals seeking work-permits.

IV Enforcement

Past experience
demonstrates that both
work permit applications and subsequent enforcement have been subject
to
substantial political interference that have left the Manx workforce
with
no confidence in a system that was already regarded as little more than
cosmetic. To have any meaning, the legislation must be seen to be
effective
in both the administration of work permits and the detection and
punishment
of offenders.

The posturing of the
Moon family, then
owners of the Castle Mona Hotel, secured an improperly issued permit
for
a member of their family. People and businesses who use this tactic do
not benefit the Island and its people and should be given every
assistance
to leave.

The failiure of the
Attorney General to
prosecute a single instance of the massive abuse uncovered by
inspectors
at the Ballamona hospital site should itself be subject to a thorough
public
inquiry since, at the current time, there can be little conclusion
drawn
other thatn the Attorney General was acting under orders from a
political
entity.

To ensure the proper
enforcement of work
permit legislation, NI and tax records should cross reference to work
permit
status.

If more inspectors
are required to carry
out work-place investigations, then these must be made available.
Further
investigation of the function of the DoTI as administrator and policer
of the legislation is also required as there is a strong perception
that
policing is, like the work permit administration, subject to political
interference.

V Specific
comments on the Department's
proposals.

As has been
previously stated by Mec Vannin,
the proposals represent a betrayal of the Manx people. This is a
shining
example of a politician elected by the people to represent their
interests,
acting as a poodle for business interests whose primary objective is
short
term monetary gain.

Where a capable Manx
worker is available
for a position, the only question that should ever arise is if there is
a better Manx worker available. Any other course is against the best
interests
of the Manx people.

The notion that the
interests of business
automatically serve the interests of the Manx people is totally
fallacious.
Businesses exist to maximise profit for their owners and share-holders.
In the area of employment, this means means maximum exploitation for
minimum
regulation. As long as businesses are permitted to import off-the
-shelf
candidates in lieu of providing proper training and long-term
commitment
to our people, the Manx workers will be forever condemened to be
treated
as second rate and denied the opportunity to fulfil their true
potential.
The alternative is emigration, a course which many are continuing to
follow.

The only aspect of
the proposed changes
for which we can find support is the proposal to hold hearings in
public
and, typically, this support is tainted by the fact that the proposal
is
to satisfy external convention rather than any inherent desire to see
just
administration. The proposal is further sullied by the proposal to give
the Tribunal unilateral power to go into private, carte blanche for
abuse
if ever there was.

ILLIAM
DHONE

From "A Book of
Manx Poetry" published
by the Manx Language Society and the World Manx Society, 1913.

For when oppression
flourish'd,And we were slaves, not
men,What voice rebellion
nourish'dAnd gave us heart
again? What proud insurgent
vassal Could shake the tyrant's
throne, And pluck from him his
castle, Say, who but Iliiam
Dhone?

Ah ! laurel tree fair
risen,But blasted at a
breath, O'erpower'd and pent in
prisonTried, doom'd, and led
to death! His fair ones he is
claspingA flash, a fall, a groanAnd in his life's blood,
gasping, Lies gallant Illiam
Dhone!

His foes traduced him
living, Hiss foes traduced him
dead, With hatred unforgiving,Our hand, our heart, our
head. But when the dead have
mounted Before the judgment
Throne, Which shall be righteous
counted Shall they, or Illiam
Dhone?

Then oh, while great
and simple Still side by side are
set,In God's own Tynwald
temple, Let Manxmen ne'er
forget, That the red seal on a
charter Of freedom all our ownIs the life-blood of our
martyr And monarch, Illiam Dhone

A.P. GRAVES.

Manx
Radio Funding

Prior to the
debate in Tynwald on the
future of Manx Radio, the following statement was sent to the Isle of
Man
Treasury Minister, Alan Bell, and the Isle of Man's Communications
Commission:

In January of 2002,
Mec Vannin took
part in the stg400,000 consultation exercise into the future of Manx
Radio.
The submission opened with the statement that, in essence, the
consultation
was superfluous in that there would be nothing stated or determined by
any party that had not been stated or determined several times
previously.

We went on to state
(as Mec Vannin has
so many times before) that the fundamental problem with Manx Radio was
that it was permanently fighting between being a public service
station,
serving the Manx people, and being a commercial station broadcasting
"easy
listening" pap interspersed with advertising to gain revenue. In this,
it was indistinguishable from any UK commercial station and, as such,
was
bound to flounder when most of its broadcast area is unpopulated water.
Mec Vannin believes that the central ethos should be public service
with
enhanced and more in-depth news coverage and reporting. If this is to
cost
more, so be it. The current situation is that the Manx people are not
being
best served by a station whose ability to provide a live news and
information
service is so badly undermined by underfunding and commercial interest.

This, in essence,
stems form an apparent
reluctance on the part of the government in the Isle of Man to provide
proper funding for the station (currently a paltry stg230,000 per year)
and the station has several political enemies who, for reasons known
best
only unto themselves, would love to see the station sold off into
private
hands. The last real attempt at this was when then Chief Minister Miles
Walker used his position to attempt to drive through the sale of the
station
job-lot to a friend and constituent, the late Brian Kreisky. It seems
that
he has never forgiven the station for not be flogged off at a bargain
price.
Likewise, former Onchan MHK Geoff Cannell's foray into politics seems
to
have been based upon a grudge against the station (of which he was a
former
employee). These are by no means the only ones however.

When the consultation
exercise was eventually
made public, last month, the opening summary could have been lifted
directly
from Mec Vannin's submission! The consultation projects a cost of some
stg800,000 per year to provide the necessary level of service and a
pre-publication
leak of this figure was immediately siezed upon by the only other wide
circulation news source in the Isle of Man, Isle of Man Newspapers.
This
company is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Johnston publishing group
and
publishes three titles compiled by the same staff.

Whearas Mec Vannin
has often been critical
of aspects of the station's management and will undoubtedly continue to
be so, we have no difficulty in endorsing the consultative document.
Tynwald
voted stg400,000 of tax-payers money to have experts tell them what we
have told them many times before. If this professional advice is
ignored,
Tynwald will be guilty of both wrecklessly wasting taxpayers money and
(yet again) doing the people of the Isle of Man a costly dis-service by
failing to provide a properly funded national broadcaster.

End of Statement

Happily, the
station got its funding.
Now the responsibility falls fairly and squarely upon the shoulders of
the station management to ensure that we DO get a national service for
our money.

Tiers
of Mann

It's not its height
nor historyNor its independent waysNor not who's thereNor who is notNor anything they says.It's not the thousand
years an' moreAn' it's not to save the
Queen.Enough to say the bein'
thereAn' the sake of bein'
seen

An' I've beenAn' aye, I've met a
VikingAn' I stood beside the
pomp an' poshAn' it wasn't to me
likingAn' I've bought the bits
of plasticAn' I've stood an' took
the strainAs I've queued with
other ManxmenFor that sprig of Bollan
bane

To wear,Not as a pagan broachNo! No!More as the mark of the
manAn inherent stain of
reproachYer knowPart o' the last o' the
clanDrained of sap an'
sustenanceEven the tramman driesAn' where fairies once
danced in circlesA Viking now kneels an'
cries.

Vinty Kneale

Smallpox
- If a threat exists, we should make proper preparations

Just how real the
bio-terror threat is,
is a questionable subject in itself, with many believing that it is
simply
a propoganda exercise to incite anti-Iraq sentiment in the run-up to
another
war. No matter what, smallpox is re-emerging as a disease and whilst
routine
pre-emptive vaccination is not advisable, it is only sensible to have
sufficient
vaccine to treat the population if an outbreak were to occur. In
response
to an enquiry in late August, Director of Public Health Dr. Ian MacLean
declined to discuss details of any planning for "security
reasons."

He was less reticent
to an IoM Newspapers
enquiry a few weeks later and seemed quite happy to discuss details -
including
an admission that there would be a selective vaccination programme.
When
challenged over the disparity between the responses, he replied that
"in
the light of a UK announcement concerning the proposed immunisation of
key personal against smallpox, it is hardly surprising that the two
statements
differ."

From the information
we have gathered,
it appears that we will be dependent on UK vaccine stocks which are not
themselves sufficient. Let's just suppose that the was a deliberate
spread
of smallpox - how could it possibly be contained and combatted without
the ability to vaccinate the entire population? If there is a genuine
possibility
of the intentional spread of smallpox, then half-hearted measures are a
pointless waste of time and money. We need to secure an
independent
supply of vaccine in ample quantity and act on our own, not the UK's
initiative.
As things stand, we are potentially faced with the uncomfortable
concept
of a selective vaccination programme based on a judgement of an
individual's
worth. What criteria would be used?

For
services rendered...

It is truly fitting
that Fred Kissack,
Chief Secretary to the Isle of Man's Council of Ministers, is to
receive the Order of the British Empire and the misjudgement of Tynwald
President Noel Cringle's call for a change in title of the UK's
colonial
administrator from Lieutenant Governor could not be more clearly
highlighted.
(See press release of 29-12-02)

It is also
particularly fitting that this
news be released two days before the annual Illiam Dhone commemoration
on the 2nd of January, when people gather at the site of Illiam Dhone's
(William Christian's) execution on the orders of the Isle of Man's
English
Lord in 1663 on a trumped up charge of treason - his "crime" was to
actually
save the the position of the Lord of Mann (though perhaps
inadvertantly)
, the independence of the Isle of Man and almost certainly the lives of
the future Lord of Mann and his family.

Conversely, Mr.
Kissack's honour is reportedly
for "services to the Isle of Man government." Not much has changed in
the
world of politics since the time of Illiam Dhone but the calibre of the
participants appears to have fallen somewhat. Mr Kissack occupies the
modern
day equivalent to the office of William Christian when he raised the
Manx
Militia against Countess Charlotte de Tremouille (the then Lord of
Mann's
wife) and her plan to use the Manx people as cannon fodder to secure
her
own safety and fortune against the English Parliamentarians. Christian,
faced with the choice of sending the Manx people for slaughter,
inevitable
defeat and enslavement as his "duty of office", or raising the militia
against the Countess's self-serving intentions, knowingly put his life
on the line and sided with the people. His actions secured a treaty
with
the English Parliamentarians that ensured a safe escape for the
Countess
and her family, the continuance of the Manx Tynwald, and an undertaking
that the Manx people would be left to "enjoy their former rights and
liberties."

Consequently, when
the English Crown was
restored, the Lordship of Man together with its high degree of autonomy
was also restored but Illiam Dhone was executed on the instructions of
the Countess's son, who somehow held Christian responsible for his own
father's execution by the roundheads at Bolton in an entirely seprate
incident!

Fred Kissack has
never been faced with
being shot. Three years ago, however, he was faced with a conflict of
loyalties
when, in his position as assistant to the Isle of Man's colonial
administrator,
the Lieutenant Governor (who's position directly parallels that
of
Countess Charlotte), he was called upon to maintain as secret from the
Council of Ministers a forthcoming investigation into the Isle of Man's
financial regulation by a UK appointed investigator. What became known
as the "Edwards Review" was revealed to the Council of Ministers by
someone
who had heard the English Parliament's question time in which the plan
to investigate the "off-shore centres" was announced. Fred Kissack, the
Council of Ministers' own Secretary, had known about it for a week but
kept it secret like a good little Quisling.

Let there be no
mistake: Had Fred Kissack
did his duty and service to the government (and people) in the Isle of
Man, he would have revealed the knowledge. This, however, would have
cost
him any chance of a "gong" from Westminster. Fred Kissack's OBE is for
sevices rendered to the British Empire and against the Manx nation. It
is formal recognition of his services to a colonial usurper over and
above
his duties to his own country and the cynism of this award is self
evident.
Mr Kissack is also reported to be very pleased with his new three
letter
appendage. No surprises there, then.

Mr. Kissack's name
may not be remembered
by anyone in more than three hundred years, most particularly anyone
involved
in any "British Empire", but Manx nationalists at least will make sure
that we have the record straight.

The
supposed existence of Ghosts

Do you suppose, we'll
ever seeA fairy in a Tramman treeOr glimpse the Glashin
astride a waveOr Mannanin as he cloaks
to saveWill the mighty big
BugganeEver go to church again

Will the crofters all
returnWill salmon leap the
Silverburn?Will Vikings scamper in
retreat?From little patterin'
naked feetWill the Moardy Dhoo,
win best of breedPlease keep your
Phantoms, on a lead

Will you be there to
see the fall?Last Manxmen, at the
roll callWith twenty strangers,
on a hillCan you tell me, which
one's Bill?Can you tell, when he is
reading?Is it me, he's
superseding?

The future is a
strangerIn a hat that doesn't fitThe past is what we lostWhen we tried to shackle
itThe present is a daydreamThat the air is always
freeAn' a Fairy's just a
squatterIn a first time buyers,
tree.

But you voted them in,The all an' the Glashin,The Ushtey Bull an' the
thief for the
thrashin'The witch an' the whore
an' the damned
an' insaneThe dead an' the deeded,
the limp an'
the lame

An' they sat them on
that hill.An' we?Well! We watch em'"Closely"

Do you suppose we'll
ever see?A fairy!In the elder tree.

Vinty Kneale

Mec
Vannin Archive established

The long and
laborious task of establishing
a Mec Vannin document archive has begun. With 40 years of material to
sift
through, mostly as paper originals, much manually typed and some
hand-written,
this is a long term project and will include earlier issues of Yn Pabyr
Seyr being added to the Pabyr Seyr archive.

The archive and Yn
Pabyr Seyr archive can
be found by following the links from: